Sacrifice
by lilmickey2008
Summary: AU: Ever been ask how much you are willing to sacrifice for the one that you love the most? As I stand here watching my closest friend fighting for his life, I just realized the answer.
1. Why Am I Dead?

**AN: It is amazing what you can come up with when you are just looking around your neighborhood. Well, I sort of had this in mind for a while, so here you go!**

**Chapter One: Why Am I Dead?**

_Where am I? Why is everything so dark? I hear someone crying above me and around me. Man, the last thing that I remembered was that I was walking Miley home from the studio, and then I am here in this dark place, or whatever the hell this place is supposed to be. What happened to Miley though? Is she all right? Did the same thing happen to her that happened to me? I wonder if she is still alive at all..._

_Wait, it is all coming back to me slowly. Someone attacked us while we were walking home._ _That much I really do remember..._

_

* * *

_

**A FEW HOURS EARLIER**

_Michael was waiting for Miley to come out of the studio so that they could walk home together. He didn't usually do this, but for some reason on this cool evening, something told him that he should come here and walk her home. So there he was, sitting outside of her studio as she finished practicing with her dancers. Michael smiled as he watched her bid farewell to her entourage, and walk over to him smiling that beautiful smile at him._

"_Well, it is good to see that you are here waiting on me." Miley smiled at him._

"_Of course, I didn't want you to walk home on your own, especially at night." Michael said, walking next to her._

"_No really, what is the real reason that you are walking with me." Miley asked stopping in front of him, crossing her arms and looking at him with a raised eyebrow._

"_Because it was the right thing to do?" Michael asked, hoping that would satisfy her, which it didn't, of course._

"_Sure kid. Let's go before it gets really dark." Miley said, playfully pinching his cheek._

_Michael wondered if he should tell her how he feels about her. Nah, nothing was going to happen, was it? No, nothing was going to happen at all..._

_Michael and Miley were walking home when Miley stopped, and stood in front of her friend with a smile on her face._

"_Really, Michael. You always jump at the opportunity to get some alone time with me. If I didn't know any better I would have thought that you were trying to get me alone so that you can take advantage of me." Miley kidded, poking her male friend with her elbow._

"_Really? After the entire time that you know me that is what you think of me?" Michael asked, laughing a little bit._

"_Well, what am I supposed to think?" Miley asked him. "Really Michael. I need to know, just what do you really think about me? I really want to know, how do you really feel about me?"_

_Michael was going to answer, but some unforseen circumstance caused him not to respond. Michael looked up, and saw someone coming at the two of them. Michael didn't think much of the guy, but something told him to keep an eye on this guy. _

_Michael looked back just in time to see the teen pull a gun out, and point it at Miley. Without thinking twice, Michael jumped in front of the gunshots directed at Miley, taking all of them in his back. The teen ran off, and Miley looked back, seeing Michael fall in a heap on the concrete sidewalk. _

"_Michael? Michael! MICHAEL!" Miley shrieked, shaking him in an attempt to get him to talk, make any sign that he was still alive. As he laid there, bleeding profusely, Miley held him close, and began to cry even harder at the state of someone she considered to be close and even loved to a certain extent._

_The last thing that Michael heard was his friend's frantic shrieks as he slipped into darkness..._

* * *

**PRESENT DAY**

Miley was still shaking after what happened to her nearly an hour earlier. Michael was shot right in front of her, and if he hadn't decided to walk home with her, everyone here would be worrying about her living through this. She hated waiting at home while he was fighting for his life in the hospital. Miley could tell that this was going to be a really difficult thing to go through, because he was dying because of him.

"Hey, Miley. How are you feeling?" Jackson asked her.

"Terrible." Miley said, wiping back some tears. "If it wasn't for him caring about me so much, he would be right here with me."

"Look. Everyone knows Michael and he will be able to make it through this, okay?" Jackson said, hugging her as the tears flowed freely at that moment. He didn't know if any of the words that he said were true, but it was better than seeing his sister break down.

Miley broke away, and smiled. She still didn't feel any better, because who knows if Michael is going to pull through?

* * *

_As I lay here, I can't help but to think about what I was told about my brother a few months earlier. He told me and I quote, 'About the only thing that you can rely on is your own common sense.' Why does that come into my mind as I lay here dying? I have no earthly idea, but I do know this, I will be up, and I will get back to my feet if it is the last thing that I do. I have too many people here that really need me to survive this, and I have to. I just have to._

* * *

****

AN: Okay, just a heads up, I am not 100% sure that this story is going to be over 10 chapters, but it will definitely be at least five, that much is for sure. Any comments or requests? Let me know how to improve this story!


	2. Things Only Go Up From Here

**AN: Well, things are looking up in this chapter, but not by a lot, mind you. Let's just see where things go from here, shall we?**

**Chapter Two: Things Only Go Up From Here**

If there was ever a time for a somber mood, it was this one. Charles was sitting in the intensive care room chair, worrying about the fact that his little brother that he was entrusted to care for was probably going to die soon, all because Michael was so worried about Miley walking home by herself, and now he was going to die because of her. Well, not her exactly, the bastard that tried to kill her, but shot him instead. Man, Michael just had to be a hero, didn't he? That was something that he hated about Michael, but it was that same selfless action that made him attractable to other women.

Charles looked over at Melody, who had tear stains on her face, but after she finally calmed down, she managed to fall asleep, but she cursed and raved at Miley for putting her brother in this situation. Man, when Marie gets here...

Charles flinched when he thought about the hell that his older sister was going to cause when she got here, and the fact that he didn't tell her was going to cause a lot of hell, because she hated Miley almost as much as the rest of the family did. Charles had to tolerate her because he friends with Robby Ray. Melody didn't hate her, but she was not 100% on board with liking her just yet, and it was no secret that Marie absolutely despised her, and after what has taken place earlier today, this was not going to make things any better, for anyone.

* * *

**ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI: ONE HOUR EARLIER**

Marie was sitting in her office, busy working and paying some bills. She had a feeling that she just had to look at the news today, but she brushed it off, and continued to keep working. Something might be wrong out in Malibu, though...

Suddenly, her six year old daughter, Lori Ann (named after her late mom) came running into the room. She did this often, but the fact that she looked scared beyond belief was good enough that it concerned the young Mom.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Lori Ann screamed, shaking Marie's arm.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Marie said, looking at her young daughter with concern.

"Come see!" Lori Ann said, pulling her towards their living room TV.

Marie looked at the television, and saw what had her daughter scared. It was a pop star channel, but it featured something about Miley Stewart, and her little brother Michael. Someone tried to kill Miley Stewart, but Michael was shot in the back multiple times instead.

Fear leaping into her throat, Marie frantically dialed her brother's cell phone number.

"Charles, what in the hell is happening out there?" Marie all but screamed. "I am watching the news and it said that Michael has been shot! Why in the hell am I finding out about it by watching TV? Is he alright? Where is he? That's it. I am coming out there, I will be out there as soon as I can."

"Mommy, what is happening?" Lori Ann asked.

"Something bad happened to your uncle Mike." Marie said. "Head upstairs. I have to pick out your clothes that you have to wear, because I have to take you with me."

"Okay." Lori Ann said, walking up the stairs. Marie just stood there, wondering about the current state of her little brother...

* * *

Miley laid in her own bed, just staring at the ceiling. She couldn't sleep, because every time she closed her eyes, she flashed back to the scene that witnessed a few hours earlier. Michael was probably going to die because of her, and even if he did somehow survive, there was no way that things were going to be the same way again. To reiterate, Michael was not going to be the same way again.

Miley rolled over in her bed, a fresh new wave of tears returning to her eyes. Miley felt so sick to her stomach, she felt as though she was going to throw up. She looked to the calm and peaceful sky, and began to cry even harder...

* * *

The pain that he felt was like nothing he ever felt before. Michael slowly opened his eyes, and blinked to get used to the bright lights around him. He slowly tilted his head to one side to look, and did the same to the other side of the room. It was obvious that he was in the hospital, because he was laying in the bed, and he had tubes coming out of him in an attempt to help him breathe better. Man, this was a feeling that he was not going to miss anytime soon.

Before he thought about the question on how he got here and what happened, terrible memories came rushing back to him. Michael was walking home with Miley when some one came up from behind, and fired at the two of them. Michael took the shots, and soon passed out. The last thing that he remembered before passing out however was Miley standing over him, looking into his eyes, as he saw her tear stained face, crying out his name.

Michael sighed, and tried to move his legs, but to his shock and horror, he couldn't. Then he remembered that he was hit in his back, and then he figured out that he must have been hit in his spinal cord.

"_Dear god, what in the hell is happening to me?"_ Michael mentally asked himself.

* * *

**AN: Michael's life has gone from bad to worse, but on a bright note, Michael's brother and sister are going to talk to him next time, and Marie is going to meet Miley. If you read my other stories, you know that those two are NOT friends. R&R!**


	3. Waking Up to Rude Awakenings

**AN: Well, Michael's niece and sister arrive in town to visit him, and she runs into Marie. If you read my past stories, you know that these two are not friends, and that is not going to change any time soon given the current situation.**

**Chapter Three: Waking Up to Rude Awakenings**

Charles was sitting in a corner chair, sound asleep in Michael's hospital room. He stretched a little bit, and cracked open his left eye to see his older sister Marie leaning over to give Michael a kiss on the cheek.

_Jesus Christ, here we go... _He thought inside of his mind.

Charles sat up, and Marie looked over at him.

"How is he doing?" She asked silently.

"From critical to guarded." Charles said, wiping the remaining sleep from his eyes. "Where's Lori Ann and Grandma?"

"Outside with Melody." Marie said. "What exactly happened?"

"He was walking Miley home when some crazy kid shot him." Charles said, summing up the story.

"Really? Was it intended for Miley?" Marie asked.

"Probably, and why are you asking that?" Charles asked back.

"Well, from what I heard, Miley got a lot of enemies now that she told the world that she was Hannah Montana." Marie said softly. "Lori Ann hates her now."

"Which we knew already." Charles answered. Marie turned her attention to her brother, who knew what was coming next.

"Why in the hell did I have to find out about this from the news? Were you too busy to give me a call to tell me what had happened?" Marie asked him.

"Yeah, I was busy, I was here trying to make sure that our little brother didn't die." Charles said, trying to keep his voice to a whisper.

"Really, and what about Miley? Has she even been in here to see him?" Marie asked Charles, getting angry at the thought of that little tramp.

"Marie, please, don't go there." Charles said in a warning tone.

"Why? Charles, she sunk her nails into our brother, and now look at him. If it wasn't for her using him as if she didn't care about him, he wouldn't be dying." Marie said, her voice full of hate.

"Marie. Stop. You are only saying that because you are worried about Michael, and you need someone to blame for his shooting." Charles said in a soothing tone. Marie sighed and sat in a chair, covering her face.

"Charles, what if he doesn't pull through?" Marie asked him.

"He will. Knowing him, he will outlast all of us. He has the will to." Charles said, soothing his older sister.

"We need him here with us. We all need him." Marie said, tears stinging the corner of her eyes.

* * *

Michael opened his eyes, and looked around. He saw his sister outside with Melody and his grandmother, but when he looked for his brother, he didn't see him. With what little strength he had, he sat up just in time to see a doctor walk in.

"Well, it is nice to see that you are awake and feeling better." The doctor, a brown haired female said with a smile.

"Where is everybody? How long have I been out for?" Michael asked in a weak tone of voice.

"Relax, you have been in surgery for a few days. We had to remove several bullets from your back." The female doctor said. "You are very lucky, anyone else would have died from this."

"I have heard that a lot lately." Michael said back with a weak laugh. "Hey, how come I can't move my legs?"

"Oh, uh well..." The female doctor's voice began to trail off, and Michael knew that some bad news was coming his way.

"What is going on?" Michael asked, bracing himself for the worst...

* * *

The female doctor walked up to Charles and Marie, and the minute that the three of them had made eye contact, she knew that this was not going to be good. Sharing one last look between each other, they both looked at the doctor.

"Are you Michael Harris's family?" The doctor asked.

"Yeah, how is he doing is he going to make it?" Marie asked her.

"He is awake and you can go and talk to him for a little bit, but I have something that you guys need to hear." She said, sitting across from them. Charles and Marie exchanged another look, and braced themselves for the worse once more.

"We safely removed the bullets from his back, but in order to restore his spine back to normal, we had to operate on it, and he may still require surgery in the near future." The female doctor said, taking a deep breath before continuing.

"Wait, what are you trying to tell us?" Marie asked, grasping Charles's hand as if it was a life line.

"Marie, Charles, I hate to say this, but Michael is not going to walk again." The female doctor stated.

Charles just sat there, letting the words sink in. Marie buried her head into her little brother's shoulder, crying very hard.

"Can we go and see him?" Charles asked, his voice breaking.

"Sure. Go in there to see him." She stated, pointing to his hospital room.

* * *

Charles and Marie re entered Michael's hospital room, and found their little brother asleep in his bed. When they went to opposite sides of his bed, further inspection saw that his eyes were puffy and his face has faint wet streaks of him crying. There was no need to wake him up and tell him the bad news.

"What do we do now? How do we tell him the bad news?" Marie said to Charles.

"We don't. Let him sleep. He has been through enough. Now we begin the long road to recovery." Charles said, ruffling Michael's long blonde hair.

This is not going to be easy on anybody, that is for sure...

* * *

**AN: We will advance time in the next chapter, because Michael returns home, and Miley get's an earful from everyone in his family. R&R!**


	4. A Bad Homecoming

**AN: After a long stint in the hospital, Michael returns home, and Miley wants to go and talk to him, but his family has a few choice words for her in the process...**

**Chapter Four: A Bad Homecoming**

The thing that really ate at Melody the whole time that she sat out here was the way that Miley and Michael interacted. The minute that he saw her, his eyes lit up in a way that she could not have imagined would have happened in the whole time that she knew him. Maybe it was in a way that Melody was jealous that Michael had a thing for Miley instead of her. She shook that feeling off, but there was something that everyone in his family could see, and it was the fact that Miley was flat out using him. She made him do things while stringing him along. It was obvious that Michael had some romantic feelings for Miley, and she either knew that and didn't care, or she knew all about his crush on her, and used that to make him do things for her.

Michael went on trips with her, basically was a servant to Miley and she was too damn ignorant to see what a great guy he was. Nobody said anything about it, but Melody and Charles could see that he was hurting behind his blue eyes. He smiled and everything, but he was really hurting on the inside.

* * *

The only thing that Miley could do was watch. She watched as Marie and Charles helped Michael into a wheelchair, and rolled them into his home. Miley felt her heart literally hurt that he was now in a wheelchair because of her. If she had not asked him to walk home with her, maybe this will not be happening. Then again, maybe Miley would be dead right now. Miley contemplated walking over there and saying that she was sorry for everything that happened to the two of them.

"Miley, if you are thinking about going over there and talking to Michael, you might want to rethink that." Jackson said appearing in her doorway.

"Why? What's going on over there?" Miley asked him.

"Well, for one Mike's getting re-situated over there." Jackson said. "Two, Melody told me that no one over there besides Michael is really on your side right now."

"Really? Why does everyone over there hate me?" Miley asked him.

"Wow, you are really asking me that?" Jackson asked. "Think. Miley. Why would his family be mad at you?"

"I don't know why." Miley stated honestly.

"Jesus, and they called me dumb." Jackson said under his breath. "Look, even though it is not your fault that Michael got shot, they don't see it that way. Look, plain and simple, this is not the time to head over there and try and talk to them, because they are all hurting right now. Just sit back and wait until the right time comes up."

"When will that be?" Jackson asked.

"No idea, but it sure as hell isn't now." Jackson said with a smile, leaving his little sister to think alone in her room.

Miley just sighed, and continued to watch the house across the street where Michael lived.

* * *

The one thing that Michael came to hate about being in a wheelchair was the fact that he was unable to go outside. Michael sat in his new room in the lower part of the house, and just stared outside at the lovely day that was happening without him. He felt himself growing bitter and hateful for what was happening to him, and what happened to Miley.

Michael wheeled himself over to his computer, and read the news article that was on the internet about the shooting that he was the victim of. Of course, they had printed information in the local social news media, which was fine enough. Michael checked the St. Louis Post Dispatch, and it had a picture of him on it with info about what happened and the fact that there was no suspects to be heard of.

"Mike Mike?" Marie said, appearing in the doorway.

"What?" Michael answered irritably.

"Come on, don't be like that." Marie asked.

"How in the hell should I feel then?" Michael asked, anger rising in his voice. "All of the crap that has been happening to me, and now I can't walk again. I was shot in the head when I was three, and since I survived that, some bigger power has another test for me to go through, spending the rest of my life as a goddamn cripple."

"Michael, look, things are looking bleak, but things are going to get better, count on it." Marie said with a smile.

"Go feed that bullshit to someone stupider." Michael said turning around, and wheeling himself back to his computer. Marie sighed irritably, and turned back to leave herself.

* * *

A few days later, Miley and Lilly decided to pay Michael a visit at home. He has not been in school for a while, and Miley just wanted to make sure that he was okay. Miley took a deep breath, and knocked on the front door. To Miley and Lilly's surprise, a short old lady with faded hair answered, and looked at both of them, but mostly Miley, with a look of hatred.

"Great, what in the hell do you want?" Rachel asked them.

"Uh, is Michael home?" Miley asked, slightly on guard.

"Yeah." Rachel stated. "Charles! The tramp is here!"

"Nice, Grandma, I mean really now." Charles said, pulling his grandmother aside. Then he began to talk in a whisper.

"You two better clear out of here, no one is in a mood to talk right now." Charles whispered.

"Why? What's going on?" Lilly asked.

"Big sis Marie is on a war path." Charles said.

"Charles. Look, I am really sorry about what happened, but I am not responsible for Michael getting shot. That creep that shot him is the one that you should be mad at, not me." Miley said, trying to defend herself.

"Oh, that's rich." Rachel said in the background.

"Hey!" Charles screamed back to the house. "I'm sorry, but it is just not recommended for you to be over here right now."

Miley just smiled, and stepped off of the porch, and began to walk back from her house. Lilly smiled and waved, and followed Miley.

"Miley?" Lilly said, catching up to her.

"Let's just go home." Miley said, tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

* * *

It was late at night, and Michael was sitting in his bed, looking at the moonlight floating into his room. The only thing that he could think of as he sat there was his future, and Miley, of course. For some odd reason, every time that he thought about Miley, he would get angry. That is something that he didn't want to happen, but it did for some reason. Michael hated himself for feeling this way, but how was he supposed to feel? Some people have been telling him to turn the other cheek, but no. That is not going to happen ladies and gentlemen. He just hoped that he was not going to die a lonely and bitter young man.

Michael sighed, and went to sleep.

* * *

**AN: Sorry for skimping out on a confrontation between Miley and Marie, but it is coning next chapter. Count on it. See you then!**


	5. Things Get Really Bad

**AN: Michael finds out some bad news, and things get worse when he talks to Miley...**

**Chapter Five: Things Get Really Bad**

He could literally feel that something big was going to happen on this day. But he shook it off as just more irritable feelings that he was experienced. Anyway, Michael was sitting in his room when a knock came from his door.

"What?" Michael asked grumpily, sliding a t-shirt on. He wheeled himself over to the door, just as Charles stepped inside.

"You got some mail." Charles said. Michael snatched the envelope from him, and threw it on his bed.

"It's from USC, maybe about the athlete scholarship you applied for. Aren't you going to open it?" Charles asked.

"No." Michael said.

"Why not?" Charles asked in disbelief.

"Dude, look at me. I can't play football anymore. I can't even walk anymore." Michael said. "Besides, it is not going to be good news for me anyways, so why bother?"

"Mike, you have to get out of this funk that you have been in. It is really starting to get on people's nerves." Charles said impatiently.

"Really? You are going to say that to me? I have been shot several times protecting a girl that I loved, and I don't even know that she feels the same way about me." Michael said, turning away from him.

"Holy shit. That is why you have been so sulky,haven't it?" Charles asked. "Look kid, I am sure that Miley feels the same way, so you just have to go and talk to her about it, okay?"

"Fine, if she comes by, I will talk to her. ALONE." Michael said, driving the point home with his accentuation on the last words.

"Alright with me. Good luck Romeo." Charles said, leaving the room.

"What an asshole." Michael said, cracking a smile for the first time in weeks.

* * *

Miley looked at her cell phone, and saw a text message from Michael. She thought about deleting it the moment that she saw it, but against raging doubts in her mind, she decided to answer it and read the message anyway. She flipped open her cell phone, and saw that it read:

_Miley, I really need to talk to you, please come by._

_Michael. ;)_

Miley sat there with a lump in her throat, contemplating not going or leaving her house at all, especially knowing the fact that everyone over there is not going to be happy to see her when or if she decides to go over there. But Michael deserved to hear an answer from her, and after what he did and has done for her, a little chat was something that deserved to happen between them at the very least.

So, a quick question. What does he have to say that is so important that she has to come over there right now? Maybe some feelings are going to be revealed?

* * *

Michael felt himself grow a smile on his face. When everyone was out of the house doing their own thing, Michael finally had time to think about what he was going to do with the rest of his life. He was paralyzed from the waist down, so an athletic career was over and done with, a pipe dream, basically. His mind soon shifted to if Miley felt the same way about him as he did feel for her.

A soft knock came from behind his door, and Michael quickly fixed himself up, and answered the door.

"Hey Miley. Come on in." Michael said, wheeling himself away, and letting her come in. Miley went to his bed, and sat on it. Michael wheeled himself right in front of her.

"So, how are you feeling?" Michael asked her.

"A lot better than you, apparently." Miley asked. She was not going to get used to seeing Michael in a wheelchair, and the fact that she was the one that caused this whole mess with everything that happened almost a week ago, she still didn't know why or how he was talking with her.

"Michael, you said that you wanted to talk to me about something." Miley said, trying to get him to talk about what is happening between them.

"Yeah, I do." Michael said, taking a deep breath. Miley looked into his eyes, and knew that what he was going to tell her was going to be really big. Miley could only brace herself for what her friend was going to tell her.

"Miley, we have been friends for a long time, and since we have been friends, certain feelings have come into my mind." Michael said, fiddling with the stitch on his wheel chair.

"Feelings? What feelings are you talking about?" Miley asked, as if she had no idea what he was talking about, but she knew exactly what Michael was talking about and what he was going to say.

"Miley, what I am trying to say is that..." Michael's voice was starting to trail off, and Miley was bracing herself for something big that she was going to say as well.

"What is it Michael?" Miley asked.

"Miley, I love you." Michael said, their blue eyes meeting. Miley stared at him for a moment, and stood up and walk over to the window. She stood there, and Michael could tell by the way that she was standing that she was crying. That really scared Michael.

"Miley? Miley, please talk to me. Say something." Michael practically begged. Miley turned around, and faced him, wiping the tears from her face.

"Michael, I'm sorry, but I don't feel the same way." Miley said. She couldn't look him in the eye, because she knew that she just destroyed a close friend of hers.

"I got to go!" Miley said, running past him, and right out his front door.

That was it. Now there was nothing more between the two of them. Was it?

* * *

**AN: Damn, that was something, was it? What is going to happen now with Miley and Michael, plus his family are really going to hit the fan now that something like this has happened. Well, keep reading to find out what happens next!**


	6. How To Deal With Heartbreak

**AN: Miley just had to break her friend's heart when Michael (the friend in question here) told her that he loved her. Now Miley has to find out what she is going to do to make this right with him, and his family.**

**Chapter Six: How To Deal With Heartbreak**

Miley ran straight into her room, and shut the door. She sank to the floor in front of the door, and huddled her knees to her chest, and began to cry softly. She hated herself for what she did to someone who obviously cares a lot about her, and because she is scared of commitment or scared that this was going to be another Jake Ryan, she didn't want to put her feelings out there in fear of being hurt again.

But someone was hurt, alright. Two people were hurting, and badly. Miley felt terrible about hurting someone that has been through so much already. Michael was in his room probably, absolutely destroyed. Here she was, feeling terrible and heartbroken because she said that she did not love him, and return his affections.

Miley was only lying to herself, though, because she knew from the way that she was crying and the fact that she was really hurting emotionally, she lied to Michael when she told him that she loved him.

She did love him.

* * *

Across the street, Michael laid in his room, crying silently. He never felt worse in his entire life. After being shot, he thought that he would never get over it, and now he has to deal with heartbreak as well. As he laid there, a lot of questions came to mind. Why did Miley do that to him? Did she not feel the same way about him that he felt about her? Why would she do that to him? Did he do something wrong?

All Michael could do was lay there, and pity himself. Soon enough, he cried himself to sleep.

* * *

Melody woke up the next morning, and walked downstairs to talk to Michael before she got ready for school. She quietly walked down the steps, and entered his room, careful not to wake him up if he was still sleep. She walked over to the bedroom window that over looked his face, and pulled it away. He didn't stir, but Melody got a look at his face, and it was his expression that really shocked her.

Michael's face had some wet streaks on it as if he was crying all night. He still had tears in his eyes as if he was crying while he was still asleep. Melody didn't want to wake Michael up, so she walked away, quietly closing the door behind her. She knew that Miley did this and caused him to be like this, so what better way than to confront the little bitch?

* * *

Miley was standing at her locker, getting ready to go to her first class when she felt Melody behind her. She could tell without looking at her the exact reason that she was there, and it was not for a friendly chat. Miley stood in her locker trying to contemplate what she was going to say to her. She slammed her locker shut, and turned to face her friend, and that term is used very loosely now.

"Melody, what brings you my way?" Miley asked, playing dumb for the time being.

"Miley, I found Michael crying in his sleep. I know you talked to him yesterday, so what happened when you talked to him?" Melody asked in a more curious tone than an angry one.

"Well, we talked about nothing really, but that was it." Miley lied. Melody could tell that she was being taken for a ride.

"Miley, don't bullshit me, what did you tell him?" Melody said. At this point, she was now getting really angry.

"Melody, look. What happened between me and Michael is our business, not yours okay?" Miley said in a nasty tone of voice. While she stomped off, Melody looked at her, trying to keep herself from chasing after her and beating the pulp out of her. As the first bell rang, she shrugged off that feeling and went to her first class.

* * *

When the afternoon rolled around, Michael was still in bed, staring at the ceiling. Charles has taken Rachel and Lori Ann to the nearby mall, leaving Michael here with his big sister. Marie wanted to get some time alone with her little brother after not seeing him for such a long time.

"Michael. You have been cooped up in this room for such a long time. What's wrong?" Marie asked, standing at his door way.

"I am not feeling good right now, and I don't want to talk to anyone right now." Michael said, turning over in his bed. Marie didn't want to leave, because Michael was in a mood that Marie was in a few times growing up, and Marie knew what that mood was.

"Let me guess, Michael. You told Miley how you really felt about her, and she shot you down, didn't she?" Marie asked, hitting the nail right on the head.

"I did, and she shot me down, badly sis." Michael said, fighting back painful memories of when Miley stomped on his heart. "After all of the bullshit I have been through in my life, and the fact that I am not going to walk again, I figured that at least I could get someone to love me, but I was wrong about that, too."

Marie never seen her brother break down the way that she was witnessing it right now. She and Charles knew that he was the strongest of the three of them, but Miley rejecting him was the last straw apparently. Marie just crossed the room, and hugged her brother as he cried into her shoulder. He was not going to be the same after this.

* * *

**AN: The last two chapters are next after this. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more!**


	7. The Ending That Is Best

**AN: Michael tries to deal with being heartbroken, and the hatred that his family has for Miley just keeps growing. Despite what I may have said earlier, this is the last chapter. Enjoy.**

**Chapter Seven: The Ending That Is Best**

Michael was pent up and fed up with what he was feeling. He was sad, he was hurt, both mentally, physically, and emotionally, plus, he had his heartbroken. Now he was angry, and that was not going to change for anything. He had a scholarship to USC to play football there, and he was going to use that to get to the NFL, but thanks to a spurn jackass, he was in a wheelchair for the rest of his life, and that was not the worst of it. The girl that he really loved did not feel the same way about him, and that made him fed up with everything. He was through being sad, now he was royally pissed off, and someone was going to pay. Being the brilliant mind that he was, he decided to get both families together to speak his mind.

That was the scene right now. Miley, Jackson, and Robby Ray sat on one side of his living room, while Marie, Charles, Melody, and Rachel sat on the other. Marie and Rachel were glaring into Miley with blind hatred. Michael wheeled himself out of his room just in time before things started to come to blows.

"Alright, I have something to say to everyone, and I want all of your mouths shut while I am talking." Michael said, parking himself at the front with the families looking at him.

"I am going to be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life, that much you all know, but this is not why you are here, today." Michael said, looking over at Miley in particular. "I have had enough of this back and forth bullshit because of what happened. Now, this is my family. I only have them left, and what we believe is that if you wrong one of us, you face the wrath of everyone."

"Michael..." Miley tried to tell him.

"Shut up." Michael all but growled. Then he turned to his family. "You three. You are real pieces of work, especially you three, Marie, Charles, Melody. The only reason that you tolerate Miley is because of me, and I can tell you that you don't need to do that anymore, because she told me flat out that she doesn't love me, or doesn't feel the same way about me as I do about her. Plain and simple, if you can't get along or get over what has happened, tough. I have, and I was the one that was shot. Thanks, and I hope that we can get along eventually."

With those last words, Michael left, smiling for the first time in a long time.

* * *

Charles and Robby Ray were sitting in his home, just chatting among themselves. Michael was right, they needed to get along for the sake of their families, because this back and forth behind everyone's back was really immature and they had to get on the same page to get over this tragedy that happened to them.

"Michael is a strong kid, he'll be alright." Robby Ray told Charles. Charles shook his head, but it is what he said next that really caught Robby Ray off guard.

"Michael's been shot before." Charles said out of nowhere. Robby Ray looked at his friend as if he grew two more heads.

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Robby Ray asked him, trying to get more information.

"That shooting that I told you about that killed my mom? Michael was hit as well, in his head." Charles said.

"How did he survive that?" Robby Ray inquired.

"He sort of didn't." Charles answered. "The bullet that entered his head is still there. It's going to kill him eventually."

"Charles, why didn't you tell me that?" Robby Ray asked.

"I didn't think that you needed to know that." Charles said. "With everything that's going on, I really didn't think about that until now. Man, now I have to deal with that right now, don't I?"

"He's a tough kid, I know that he will survive this." Robby Ray said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks." Charles said.

* * *

Melody walked downstairs, and saw that Michael was sitting in his room, working on his computer. He looked at her with a smile on his face, and she couldn't help but smile as well.

"Did you know what you just did?" Melody asked.

"No, what?" Michael asked.

"You just smiled." Melody answered. "Are you feeling better?"

"A little. It was good to get that off my chest, and I needed to let everyone know what I was thinking." Michael said.

"I know." Melody said, smiling back at him. "Is there anything else I can do?"

"Go and talk to Miley. Apologize to her for acting like this was her fault." Michael said. Melody was about to protest, but Michael just gave her a brotherly look.

"Fine. Wish me luck." Melody said irritably.

"Good luck. You are going to need it." Michael called after her. Melody looked back at him, and glared, then slammed his door shut.

* * *

Miley was sitting in her backyard when she felt someone sit right next to her. She looked up, and saw that it was Melody. She took a defensive position, and Melody threw her hands up in defense.

"Whoa, tiger, I am not here to fight you." Melody said, taking a seat next to her.

"After everything that you put me through since you have been here, you expect me to be nice to you?" Miley asked.

"No, but that would be nice." Melody stated. "Look. Where Michael and I come from, family is important. You mess with one of us, you get the wrath of all of us. Michael really loved you from the moment that he laid eyes on you. He never did that with me, so he really has it bad for you."

"Michael sent you over here, didn't he?" Miley asked her.

"Yeah, he did." Melody laughed. "Look, in all seriousness, what he said was totally right. He loves us both, and it will mean the world to him if we can get along, so can we at least try?"

"I am willing if you are." Miley said with a smile on her face.

* * *

A few days later, after Marie, Rachel, and Lori Ann went back to Missouri, Michael found himself in his bathtub downstairs. When he was finish bathing, he climbed out, and with little trouble, wrapped himself in a towel and sat in his chair. Feeling really good about himself, he wheeled himself into his room, and there he got a surprise.

"Miley?" Michael said in surprise.

"Your door was open, and I just came in." Miley said, kind of blushing at the sight of Michael's wet bare chest. "Do you need any help getting dressed?"

"No, I am fine." Michael said. "So, anything on your mind?"

"I lied." Miley said, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye.

"About what?" Michael asked her.

"When I said that I didn't feel the same way about you the way that you feel about me. I lied to protect myself from being hurt again." Miley said.

"I won't hurt you." Michael said, reaching out to her, and making her take a seat on his lap. Miley sighed, and cuddled close to him.

"I love you Miley." Michael said softly.

"I love you too. Michael." Miley said, finally returning his love for her. She drove it home with a soft kiss on the lips.

Michael smiled, and hugged the girl that he loved the most.

**THE END**

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**AN: Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more!**


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